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OGH: No Removal of Managing Director by Liquidator
Corporate Law Procedural LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has clarified that an insolvency administrator does not have the power to dismiss a managing director in the insolvency of a shareholder of a limited liability company (GmbH). The ori...
EU: Instant Payments Are Here! Send Money within Seconds
European LawNo more delays of several days when transferring money. Individuals and businesses in the European Union will soon be able to receive money in a matter of seconds. This has been decided by the members of the European Parliament, paving the way for th...
OGH Ruling on Snow Dump Easement
Civil LawEssentially, exercising a particular right is required for the usufruct of a right over another person’s property. This must be apparent to the owner of the encumbered property; however, it does not depend on the owner’s positive knowledge thereof. T...
ECJ: Air Passenger Rights – No Compensation after Rebooking
European LawThe European Court of Justice (ECJ) has decided whether a passenger who booked an alternative flight due to an imminent long delay is entitled to compensation under the Air Passenger Rights Regulation (261/2004). In 2019, the plaintiff booked a fligh...
OGH on Chairlift Operators’ Liability
Civil LawIn transportation contracts, the obligation not to harm the physical well-being of passengers is considered a secondary contractual obligation. The first and second plaintiffs were riding the defendant’s chairlift in January 2018, when the weather su...
OGH: Statute of Limitations for Capital Repayments
Corporate LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has ruled that the suspension of the statute of limitations pursuant to Section 1494 of the Austrian Civil Code (Allgemeines Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, hereinafter ABGB) applies analogo...
GER: Commercial Code Adjustments to Relieve Smaller Companies
Corporate LawThe German government has decided to raise the financial thresholds for accounting and financial reporting by nearly 25%. The aim is to reduce administrative burdens on small and medium-sized companies. For this purpose the German Federal Ministry of...
OGH: Compensation for Wrongful Birth
Civil LawA long-standing legal dispute ends. The Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH, in a ruling by its enlarged Senate, has now decided on the claim for compensation by parents after the wrongful birth of a child as a result of a m...
ECJ: No Lifetime Storage of Biometric and Genetic Data
European LawHow long may biometric and genetic data be kept on people who have a criminal record? This was a question recently addressed by the European Court of Justice (ECJ). In Bulgaria, an individual was registered by the police as a false witness as part of...
GER: Does Gifting Company Shares Result in Taxable Salaries?
Tax LawThe transfer of company shares as a gift to senior employees for the purpose of securing a company’s succession does not automatically result in taxable salaries in the case of income from work according to Section 19 (1) sentence 1 no. 1 of the Germ...
Dog Barking as Noise Nuisance
Civil LawAccording to Section 364 (2) of the Austrian Civil Code (Allgemeines Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, hereinafter ABGB), if there is a noise nuisance coming from a property, the neighbour may stop the property owner from causing any such disturbance. The def...
OGH: Postponement of Compulsory Inheritance Portion
Civil LawTestators may order the postponement of the right to their heirs’ compulsory inheritance portion for a maximum of five years after the testators’ death pursuant to Section 766(1) of the Austrian General Civil Code (Allgemeines bürgerliches Gesetzbuch...
OGH on Legal Capacity and Mental Illness
Civil LawA person has legal capacity if they can appreciate the scope of a particular transaction and the consequences of their actions, and act in accordance with that understanding. The plaintiff had taken out a life insurance policy with the defendant insu...
GER: Savings Bank Customers’ Rights Strengthened
Civil LawThe German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, hereinafter BGH) has ruled that the standard right to cancel a premium savings contract can continue to exist even after the maximum premium level has been reached. This applies, for example, in...
GER: Management Liability Limited by Internal Rules
Corporate LawAccording to the German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, hereinafter BGH), internal rules of responsibility in the management of a legal entity cannot lead to the abolition of liability under criminal and liability law, but they can lead ...
VfGH: KIM-V Complies with Law
Banking LawThe Austrian Constitutional Court (Verfasssungsgerichtshof, hereinafter VfGH) has dismissed a complaint against the Austrian Financial Market Authority's (FMA) Real Estate Financing Measures Ordinance (Kreditinstitute-Immobilienfinanzierungsmaßnahmen...
OGH: No temporary suspension of capital measures
Corporate LawAn application by a listed European Company (SE) for temporary suspension of capital measures has been rejected by the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH). The situation was as follows: A limited company domiciled in Russia...
Insurance Coverage for Rainwater Damage
Civil LawThe interpretation of general policy conditions is based on the standard of the average policyholder. The apparent purpose of a provision must always be taken into account. The plaintiff took out a bundled insurance policy with the defendant. Special...
OGH Rules on Product Liability Claims
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has again considered claims for damages under the Austrian Product Liability Act (Produkthaftungsgesetz, hereinafter PHG) and ruled that instructions in pictogram form are generally i...
OGH on Limitation Periods for Dismissal Compensation
Labour LawAccording to Section 34(1) of the Austrian Salaried Employees Act (Angestelltengesetz, hereinafter AngG), claims for compensation for premature dismissal must be asserted in court within six months. Otherwise, they are void. The plaintiff had been in...
OGH on Remote-Work Expense Reimbursements
Labour LawAs a matter of principle, the provision of equipment for the performance of work is the responsibility of the employer. If employees provide the equipment themselves, they have a claim against the employer for reimbursement of expenses under Section ...
OGH on Real Estate Co-Ownership
Civil LawAccording to Section 829 of the Austrian Civil Code (Allgemeines Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, ABGB), each co-owner is the full owner of their share. Each co-owner is entitled to use the property to the extent of their co-ownership share, provided that th...
OGH on ‘Wealth Sacrifice Theory’ and Estate Gifts
Civil LawPursuant to Section 782(1) of the Austrian General Civil Code (Allgemeines Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, hereinafter ABGB), gifts made by a deceased person to individuals who are not entitled to a compulsory inheritance portion in the last two years prior...
OGH: Absorption Proceedings and More Debt
Procedural LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has ruled: If, as agreed, a loan does not become due until the end of the absorption proceedings (Abschöpfungsverfahren[1]), there is no breach of obligation within the meaning of Sec...
No Insurance for Improper Use of Parking Brake
Civil LawUnder Section 61 of the Austrian Insurance Contract Act (Versicherungsvertragsgesetz, hereinafter VersVG), the insurer is released from its obligation to pay if the policyholder caused the insured event intentionally or in a grossly negligent manner....
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